.38 Spl / .357 Mag sub loads w/ 180 gr. bullet & Trailboss?

[Garrett]

There are not many published loads for 180 gr. bullets in .38 Special cases. There are a few loads in .357 Mag, but they mostly use slower powders, and give "magnum" velocities. I did find a load using Titegroup in a Hodgdon manual from 2005, as well as a Win 231 load in the Hodgdon #26 manual (looks like it was first published in 1992 maybe?)

Any of my more recent manuals only list the slower powders. Obviously they weren't written with subsonic, suppressed shooting in mind.

So with that in mind, I was going to try the starting loads with Titegroup and 231. But I wonder if anyone has tried Trailboss with this combo in either .38 Spl or .357 Mag cases.

[r]

180 gr hornady xtp with 5.6 grains of unique works pretty good thru a handi-rifle with thread on can
the penn state 230 gr cast thunderhead does good at 5.1 grains but drops like a rock (falls about 6 inches below the 180 at 100 yds)

[lafsnguy]

I just recently did some experimenting with this in my marlin 1894c. I was using 38 special brass loaded long to 1.575 with a 180 XTP. With 5.0 grains of titegroup I was getting about 940 fps but my extreme spread was like 80 fps. I went up to 5.3 and my average was about 980 and extreme spread went down to about 30. I'm going to go up to 5.5 to see if I can get closer to 1050 or so and lower my extreme spread even more. I saw no pressure signs but I know with fast burning powder and a heavy bullet things can go bad quickly. It was extremely quiet with my liberty infiniti on.

[Garrett]

I haven't done anything with TB yet, but thought I'd report back on what I have done.

4.0 gr of 231 was way slow. I was getting velocities in the 500 fps range, and grouping around 3" at 25 yds.

5.0 gr of Titegroup pushed me up to the 800 fps range and a 1.2" group.

These were all shot through a 6.5" T/C Contender.

[Wahoo95]

Any new progress with these loads? I'm looking to do something similar and having a hard time finding data

[MJF1911]

There is quite a bit of data in the Accurate/Ramshot 5.0 guide for subsonic loads in .357 Mag with several of their powders.

[Slow Hand]

The .38 used ti be loaded with 200 gr bullets. I think they called them Super Police loads or something similar. Here's some load data out of my 45th Lyman manual.



I've got a 195gr swc-gc mild from NEI that I shoot a lot in heavier .357 loads in my Rossi Levergun. If my machinist can thread it, I'm sure ill be jolting a bunch of that bullet in .38 cases with my Isis-9 screwed on the end!

[hunter2]

TB works great with 190 gr cast hp gc and pb in 357 and 38. It also seems to be a little quitter to my ear than a couple of others. Using in 357 Handi ( sub ) and Ruger 357 Blackhawk.

[glocker17]

I have settled on 4.2gr of TiteGroup under a 190 Hunters Supply cast in 357 cases. Around 1020fps in 10" barrel, accurate , and quiet.

[Garrett]

I just tried out a load this weekend using AA#2 and a 180 gr. XTP, loaded to .357 length, in a .38 Spl. case (.357 Special, maybe? It makes it easy to tell the subsonic loads on sight).

It sounded good, and velocity was just under 900 fps.

I didn't shoot for groups, but it was hitting quite a bit low at 100 yards. I had sighted it in with the Bowers VERS-9s last time I had it out, and this time I was shooting with the Trident-9. I have found the Contender series seems to show a much greater difference in POI from one can to the next, and when you shoot suppressed vs. unsuppressed. I can get away with swapping cans around on many other guns, and they all hit pretty close to the same POA. But with the Contender, it seems you have to pick one can and stick with it.

[r]

I have moved up to 245grain cast 358 projos with 6.3 grains of unique. read a big long post over on castboolits from guys who have been loading 358 bullets just barely stuffed into 357 cases, tried it myself. they run thru the can fine. little more thump than 180 grainers.